Monday, August 18, 2014

Monday, August 18, 2014

Talia's tips for this recipe: This octopus dish was thoroughly delicious. However, for it to be edible you have to make the octopus tender. You simply boil a pot of hot water and place the octopus inside, then you take the octopus out, cool it, poke it, and see if it’s tender enough to stick a fork through its body. The routine goes like this: boil then cool, boil then cool.

Friday, July 04, 2014

Soundcheck takes a look back 50 years, to the summer of 1964 -- a year also known as "The Freedom Summer."

First: For a time, the most successful American performers of the 1960s, The Supremes rivaled even The Beatles in terms of red-hot commercial appeal. Biographer Mark Ribowsky shares some stories behind classics like “Where Did Our Love Go” -- and shows how the concept of “blacks singing white” was essential to the evolution of modern music.

Then: Writer Mark Kurlansky delves into Martha and the Vandellas' hit song “Dancing in the Street,” and the new meaning it took on during the Civil Rights movement.

Friday, July 12, 2013

Mark Kurlansky tells how the song “Dancing in the Street” became an anthem for a changing America. It was released in the summer of 1964—the time of the Mississippi Freedom Summer, the Berkeley Free Speech Movement, the beginning of the Vietnam War, the passage of the Civil Rights Act, and the lead-up to a dramatic election. Kurlansky’s book Ready for a Brand New Beat explains how “Dancing in the Street” became an activist anthem.

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

In this episode: Rapper and hip hop mogul Jay-Z just released his 12th studio album, Magna Carta Holy Grail. Jeff Rosenthal, hip hop writer and one half of the hip hop sketch comedy group It’s The Real, tells us his thoughts about the record.

Plus: The Martha and the Vandellas song “Dancing in the Street” was originally supposed to be a summer dance hit. But then the 1960’s happened — and the song took on a whole new meaning. We discuss the song with author Mark Kurlansky, whose new book is called Ready for a Brand New Beat: How “Dancing in the Street” Became the Anthem for a Changing America.

And: Contemporary Christian musician Amy Grant recently released a new album called How Mercy Looks From Here. We talk with the Grammy winning artist about incorporating her faith into her music, going to Bonnaroo, and her gay fans — and we hear some of her new songs live in our studio.

Friday, January 14, 2011

Salt is found on most dining tables and in most kitchens—but this ubiquitous household item has a long and curious history. It’s a flavor enhancer, an ice melter, has been used as a currency, and has shaped civilization. Mark Kurlansky, author of Salt: A World History, and Dr. Sonia Angell, Director, Cardiovascular Disease Prevention and Control, New York City Health Department, explain what salt is, where it comes from, and discusses its influence on history and on our health.

Thursday, May 21, 2009

The Federal Writers' Project in the 1930’s was part of FDR’s efforts under the New Deal to provide work for authors and artists. Under the program a number of writers were dispatched all across America to chonricle of lifestyles and traditions of local people, including cuisine. Mark Kurlansky looks at ...

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

During the Great Depression, President Franklin Roosevelt decided that even unemployed writers needed to be put to work. So as part of the New Deal he created the Federal Writers Project and dispatched scribes to all corners of the nation to document, among other topics, food. "What America Eats" became a national compendium of what people were cooking and eating, region by region. Being a "locavore" is a fashionable lifestyle choice now. But in 1940 you ate locally because you had to—the lack of highways and freezers kept diners to a regional and seasonal menu long before it became chic. Notable writers including Eudora Welty who covered Mississippi meals and Zora Neale Hurston who tackled her favorite Floridian foods all weighed in on regional cuisine for the project. In his new book, "Food of a Younger Land," author Mark Kurlansky revives the unfinished America Eats project. He joins The Takeaway for a look back at the diet of a nation.

Mark Kurlansky Newsfeed

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